First Favorite Songs of 2013

Well, here it is: my first post of 2013. To be honest, I can’t really think of many albums coming out this year that I’m excited about—at least not yet. That said, this week alone I have fallen in love with two new songs off of albums coming out within the next few months. So I guess I can’t complain too much.

This first is from one of my all-time favorites, The Airborne Toxic Event. I saw them yet again at Webster Hall this past Tuesday (with opener The Chevin, another favorite!) I’ve blogged about both bands a bunch, so I will save the rambling praise for another day. Let’s just say that the show was incredible as always, and I am so excited for TATE’s new album, Such Hot Blood, dropping this spring. They released an epically anthemic new single, “Timeless,” and while it’s a different sound for them, I am a big fan.



And the second song comes from Ivan & Alyosha, who I’d never heard before. They’re labelmates to The Lumineers though, and I am really diggin the folksy vibe. The new album comes out on February 26, so it looks like I may have new music to look forward to sooner than I thought.

What new music are you looking forward to this year?

My Favorite Albums of 2012

Well, it's already time once again to reflect on all the great music that has come out over the past year. Here are my favorites, in no particular order.

Of Monsters and Men - My Head Is An Animal: Last January, I dubbed these guys my new favorite band of the year. (This was before their album even came out in the US, because I am suuuuch a hipster). This band is totally deserving of all the attention they received, and I'm so happy that they found success here as well as Iceland.

Fiona Apple - The Idler Wheel: Fiona is my queen. This album is genius. Etc etc. 

The Gaslight Anthem - Handwritten: I'm basically obsessed with this band and lead singer Brian Fallon these days. Every time I listen to this album, I fall a little bit more in love with it.

The Chevin - Borderland: David Letterman said it best when these British lads played on his show: "Holy crap! That's good."

Green Day - ¡Dos!: I thought American Idiot was fantastic and I will fight anyone who says otherwise. That said, Green Day's take on retro-y garage rock on this album is just so damn fun. I love ¡Uno! and ¡Tre! too, but this is my favorite of the three. 

A Fine Frenzy - Pines: I have such a girl crush on singer Alison Sudol. She could put out a dubstep record and I would still buy it. Thankfully, she channeled her energies into this vibrant, nature-inspired album instead.

The Lumineers - The Lumineers: I don't mean to toot my own horn, but The Lumineers are another band that I totally discovered before they were famous. (#trendsetter) But thanks to Mumford & Sons and that Bing commercial, the rest of the world is discovering how fabulous this three-piece folk band is. I also interviewed lead singer Wesley Schultz back in April, right as the band really started to take off.

Blaqk Audio - Bright Black Heaven: I'm not usually an electronic music fan, but I'll buy anything singer Davey Havok wants to sell me.

The All-American Rejects - Kids in the Street: This band has yet to disappoint me. Right when I moved away from home to NYC, they released a mature album about growing up and figuring out who you are. Thanks for reading my mind, guys.

The Horrible Crowes - Elsie: Okay, this album actually came out last year, but I just discovered it and have listened to basically nothing else since. 

Thanks 2012, it's been real.

Autumn Adventures

This Thanksgiving, I'm grateful for all the fun and adventure that has been thrown my way since I moved to New York. Life has been exceptionally eventful lately, so here are some of my favorite reasons why I've been way too busy to update this blog.

1. Earlier this month, I traveled to Greece with a few family members. While there, we ate obscene amounts of food, explored ancient temples and monasteries, and even stumbled upon long lost distant relatives we never knew existed. The above picture is of a monastery in Meteora, near the village where my mom’s family came from. I’ve never had any interest in being a nun before, but the scenery almost made me consider it.

2. Before my travels, I met JK Rowling, my writing idol and the queen of my childhood. Somehow, I managed to score a ticket to her only promotional event in North America for her new book, The Casual Vacancy. I really only had about ten seconds with her during the signing, but I blurted out something about how much she has inspired my writing, and she thanked me graciously. The picture is blurry, because I was too busy focusing on not peeing my pants in excitement to worry about a good photo. (But hey, I did better than the girl sobbing with joy in the lobby afterward).

3. Apparently the Gods of Fangirl-dom were smiling down upon me this month, because just days after the Rowling event, I also met Jake Gyllenhaal after a performance of his off-Broadway play, "If There Is I Haven’t Found It Yet." For those of you who don’t know, I once wrote an embarrassing (but totally accurate) post about my love for Mr. Gyllenhaal. I’d had the honor of being in his presence once before, but this time we actually spoke. While he may have looked like a hairy hobo with that ridiculous beard, he was quite the gentleman, and even took a picture for me since I was juggling too many items. Sigh. Oh, and the play was good too.

4. And can we talk about all the great albums that have come out lately? I’m especially loving Green Day’s latest, Dos. Other notable albums include The Chevin’s Borderland and Pines by A Fine Frenzy. 

Happy Thanksgiving!

The Chevin, Mercury Lounge, 8/30/12

In all my years of concert-going, there has only been one opening act that I ended up liking better than the headlining band I came to see. During my sophomore year of college, I went to see The Bravery and while they put on a great show, they weren't the band still on my mind at the end of the night. Instead, I had fallen in love with Your Vegas, the British opener. From the moment the twinkly "Troubled Times" started up, I knew this was the band for me.

My friends and I ended up attending several Your Vegas shows after that, and I was continually blown away by the band's performances. The venues were tiny, the kind where the musicians usually mill around with the audience before and after. I specifically remember walking in the door once and lead singer Coyle Girelli was standing right there, as if he had been just waiting to greet us with hugs. But the size of the venue didn't stop Your Vegas from putting on an impressive show. These are professional musicians, c'mon. 

Then suddenly, all the fun was over. They stopped playing shows near me and changed their name to The Chevin. A few years went by but I kept tabs on the band, and when the new EP was released in the U.K. last winter, I scoured the Internet to find it (don't worry, I bought it legally). 

Anyway, all this back story is leading up to last night, when I finally had the chance to see The Chevin play again. And man, I couldn't believe how far they've come. They sold out the Mercury Lounge a night after making their national television debut on The Late Show with David Letterman. I found myself beaming like a proud mother while I watched both the broadcast and the show. Reunited and it feels so right. The Chevin deserves so much attention, and I'm glad more and more people are catching on.

In the words of Letterman: "Holy crap! That's good."

Writing, writing, writing

Please excuse the lack of posts lately, but I've been busy. I started a new job (hurrah!) writing about music, and I'm still freelancing for several different websites, so needless to say, when I had some spare time, I wasn't exactly dying to write more. But, if you'd like to see the writing I've been doing in other places, feel free to check out my interview with Justin Sane of Anti-Flag and my interview with Wesley Schultz of The Lumineers. Both of them were lovely to talk to.

I truly feel blessed to be writing professionally about what I love at last. Moving to New York without a job was a gigantic, scary risk but I went for it, and now it is finally paying off. I still have lots of goals for myself, but at least I've made some progress now. I wish I could say that it feels great, but honestly, it doesn't even feel real yet. I guess the moral of this story is that hard work pays off, so stick with it.

Now, I leave you with a new song by a band that I really, really love. Enjoy!

Favorite Albums of 2011

In no particular order.

2011 was truly a great year for my music collection. A bunch of my favorite bands released new material, and almost all of it actually lived up to my ridiculously high expectations. I also fell in love with some new acts that I stumbled across. Last year, I couldn't even come up with a top ten list; this year, I can't keep it to ten, so I had to expand to twelve. Here they are, along with links to any reviews I wrote earlier.

Incubus - If Not Now, When?: If I had to choose a favorite album of the year, it would probably be this one. So many critics and fans disliked this album, leaving me to wonder if the rest of the world is crazy. This album is just gorgeous. It reawakened my obsession with Incubus and I ended up spending a combined total of approximately four months listening only to their music.
The Airborne Toxic Event - All At Once: I was originally disappointed in this album, but turns out I just needed some time to let it grow on me. TATE has to be one of the most hard-working bands I listen to, and also one of the most fun to see live.
Hard-Fi - Killer Sounds: I dare you to resist busting a move while listening to this.
Florence and the Machine - Ceremonials: I do still find a few songs to be a little boring, but when these songs are good, they are great. Florence Welch is a goddess.
Midnight Youth - World Comes Calling: My only complaint about this album is that it is too short. These songs are so epic and catchy that I simply am not satisfied with only ten.
City and Colour - Little Hell: City and Colour always puts out staggeringly beautiful music, and this latest effort is no exception.
The Black Keys - El Camino: This band blew up for a reason. The album just came out so I'm still getting acquainted with it, but I knew on the first spin that this one would be constantly on repeat.
Jack's Mannequin - People and Things: This album makes me both desperately sad and insanely happy. Damn you Andrew McMahon for manipulating my emotions.
Movits! - Ut Ur Min Skalle (Out Of My Head): If you're looking for a Swedish hip-hop swing jazz band that will make you dance like you're in an old school iPod commercial, Movits! is the band for you.
Foo Fighters - Wasting Light: You know, I never really listened to the Foo Fighters before this year, despite my great admiration for Dave Grohl. So I can't claim to be a loyal fan, but I do love this album.

U.S. Royalty - Mirrors: This was my soundtrack to summer this year.
The Chevin - Champion EP: This band, formerly known as Your Vegas, did not make it easy to get this EP. Thankfully, it was worth the wait.

It's been real, 2011.